Call-up Christante, Crystal Lake South
sink rival Crystal Lake Central
Center-back contributed on both ends; Gators even FVC record
By Matt MIsiek
CRYSTAL LAKE -- Less than seven days ago, Crystal Lake South’s Ricky Christante was not even on the varsity roster. Christante was honing his craft on the JV side.
However, a stretch of tough games over a short period of time gave many Gator players the opportunity to see significant minutes on the field. Christante, a sophomore defender, was called up to the big squad, and he has made the most of the opportunity.
Rubbing shoulders with the likes of Conant, Addison Trail and Jacobs over the past few days served Christante and the Gators well against Crystal Lake Central on Thursday afternoon.
In an intense Fox Valley Conference matchup, Christante tallied the opening goal and helped the backline shined during the Gators’ 3-0 victory.
The breakthrough came in the 28th minute off a Ryan Coughlin corner from the left side. After glancing off a Gator head, the ball fell in front of the goalline and Christante slammed it home from close range to continue his whirlwind week.
“I saw the ball right there, bouncing,” said Christante. “I just charged at it and put it home.”
What made a bigger impact was cool and calm Christante performed for Crystal Lake South (10-6- 1, 2-2) in the back, including a notable clearance on a run by Tigers’ forward Cade Klusendorf in the 62nd minute.
Christante’s offensive and defensive exploits earned him the Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match honor.
“I was pretty nervous coming into the first game,” he said. “Since I was friends with most of the team before being called up, it was easier to connect with them once I got the feel of the game.”
Crystal Lake South coach Brian Allen explained the retooling of his backline over the past four matches.
“We needed some consistency,” he said. “We needed some talking, and we decided that over this past weekend we were going to look at some of these younger players.”
“We also talked about these younger players being given the opportunity to shine. Ricky was definitely able to shine. He solidified one spot. Evan Carlson, a freshman who played earlier in the year but has been banged up, is back now and getting his minutes as well.”
With the Gators’ backline keeping Crystal Lake Central (7-5, 1-4) away from many offensive opportunities, their frontman, senior Andrew Grabowski, grabbed the offensive spotlight in the second half.
Working along the right side, just in front of center, Grabowski was able to chip the ball forward down the sideline and chase it down. Then he looped in a perfect cross to the box where his brother Brad volleyed past Tiger goalie Drew Dayton to double the Gator advantage. The elder Grabowski netted an empty net goal with just seconds remaining to close out the scoring.
“I saw the sideline open up,” said Andrew. “I took a touch past the defender, and I actually saw him (Brad) this time, making the run. I played the ball in to him and he put it away.”
The atmosphere that the two schools provided was intense, and it played out in front of a larger rivalry crowd.
Everything was highly contested and every touch had meaning. Unfortunately for the visiting Tigers, they were unable to breakthrough.
“It was nice that the fans made their way out, especially with this weather,” said Crystal Lake Central coach Mark Leverentz. “The first half for us, it’s not the team I was used to seeing, and it was not indicative of the way that we have been playing so far this season.”
Klusendorf offered a bit more perspective from the Tiger side.
“It’s always going to be a big game,” he said. “A big rivalry, we knew it was going to be a tough game. We came out fiery, but we were not as focused on set-pieces, and that’s where they got us.”
With four Fox Valley Conference dates the Gators five-remaining matches, coach Allen and his crew feel like some little details are now making the difference.
“We just have a good rotation,” he said. “Some people looked in the mirror and were very honest about their roles. Joey Montalbano, a senior, was very honest in saying that he needs to see the game for 15 minutes. Then he comes in and plays fantastic.
“It’s the little things that we were not picking up before. Now with this rotation, we feel like we are more set and can start to put the pieces of this puzzle together.”
Coach Allen had more standouts in mind after the win.
“Oscar (Campos) was a threat today. I thought he played really well,” Allen aid. “Joel Bennett, I thought, gave us some good energy. Tommy (Ciezadlo) got his first start today at center-mid, and I cannot say enough good things about Jack Wruck.
“Jack is our sophomore holding-mid, and he’s felt a lot more comfortable in his position. His performance and comfort level has really helped the rest of the team.”
Starting lineups
Crystal Lake Central
GK: Drew Dayton
D: Garrett Hughes
D: Joey Cubelic
D: Patrick Kinahan
D: Kevin Winslow
MF: Gustavo Costa
MF: Aaron Castaneda
MF: Kareem Castaneda
MF: William Sengstock
MF: Ryan Nottoli
F: Cade Klusendorf
Crystal Lake South
GK: Brandon Gorka
D: Ricky Christante
D: Marcin Sliwinski
D: Ryan Yazel
D: Evan Carlson
MF: Brad Grabowski
MF: Ryan Coughlin
MF: Nikolas Getzinger
MF: Tommy Ciezadlo
MF: Jack Wruck
F: Andrew Grabowski
Man of the Match: Ricky Christante, D, Crystal Lake South
Officials Alex Klement (center); Bob Hansen; Bob Crummere
sink rival Crystal Lake Central
Center-back contributed on both ends; Gators even FVC record
By Matt MIsiek
CRYSTAL LAKE -- Less than seven days ago, Crystal Lake South’s Ricky Christante was not even on the varsity roster. Christante was honing his craft on the JV side.
However, a stretch of tough games over a short period of time gave many Gator players the opportunity to see significant minutes on the field. Christante, a sophomore defender, was called up to the big squad, and he has made the most of the opportunity.
Rubbing shoulders with the likes of Conant, Addison Trail and Jacobs over the past few days served Christante and the Gators well against Crystal Lake Central on Thursday afternoon.
In an intense Fox Valley Conference matchup, Christante tallied the opening goal and helped the backline shined during the Gators’ 3-0 victory.
The breakthrough came in the 28th minute off a Ryan Coughlin corner from the left side. After glancing off a Gator head, the ball fell in front of the goalline and Christante slammed it home from close range to continue his whirlwind week.
“I saw the ball right there, bouncing,” said Christante. “I just charged at it and put it home.”
What made a bigger impact was cool and calm Christante performed for Crystal Lake South (10-6- 1, 2-2) in the back, including a notable clearance on a run by Tigers’ forward Cade Klusendorf in the 62nd minute.
Christante’s offensive and defensive exploits earned him the Chicagoland Soccer Man of the Match honor.
“I was pretty nervous coming into the first game,” he said. “Since I was friends with most of the team before being called up, it was easier to connect with them once I got the feel of the game.”
Crystal Lake South coach Brian Allen explained the retooling of his backline over the past four matches.
“We needed some consistency,” he said. “We needed some talking, and we decided that over this past weekend we were going to look at some of these younger players.”
“We also talked about these younger players being given the opportunity to shine. Ricky was definitely able to shine. He solidified one spot. Evan Carlson, a freshman who played earlier in the year but has been banged up, is back now and getting his minutes as well.”
With the Gators’ backline keeping Crystal Lake Central (7-5, 1-4) away from many offensive opportunities, their frontman, senior Andrew Grabowski, grabbed the offensive spotlight in the second half.
Working along the right side, just in front of center, Grabowski was able to chip the ball forward down the sideline and chase it down. Then he looped in a perfect cross to the box where his brother Brad volleyed past Tiger goalie Drew Dayton to double the Gator advantage. The elder Grabowski netted an empty net goal with just seconds remaining to close out the scoring.
“I saw the sideline open up,” said Andrew. “I took a touch past the defender, and I actually saw him (Brad) this time, making the run. I played the ball in to him and he put it away.”
The atmosphere that the two schools provided was intense, and it played out in front of a larger rivalry crowd.
Everything was highly contested and every touch had meaning. Unfortunately for the visiting Tigers, they were unable to breakthrough.
“It was nice that the fans made their way out, especially with this weather,” said Crystal Lake Central coach Mark Leverentz. “The first half for us, it’s not the team I was used to seeing, and it was not indicative of the way that we have been playing so far this season.”
Klusendorf offered a bit more perspective from the Tiger side.
“It’s always going to be a big game,” he said. “A big rivalry, we knew it was going to be a tough game. We came out fiery, but we were not as focused on set-pieces, and that’s where they got us.”
With four Fox Valley Conference dates the Gators five-remaining matches, coach Allen and his crew feel like some little details are now making the difference.
“We just have a good rotation,” he said. “Some people looked in the mirror and were very honest about their roles. Joey Montalbano, a senior, was very honest in saying that he needs to see the game for 15 minutes. Then he comes in and plays fantastic.
“It’s the little things that we were not picking up before. Now with this rotation, we feel like we are more set and can start to put the pieces of this puzzle together.”
Coach Allen had more standouts in mind after the win.
“Oscar (Campos) was a threat today. I thought he played really well,” Allen aid. “Joel Bennett, I thought, gave us some good energy. Tommy (Ciezadlo) got his first start today at center-mid, and I cannot say enough good things about Jack Wruck.
“Jack is our sophomore holding-mid, and he’s felt a lot more comfortable in his position. His performance and comfort level has really helped the rest of the team.”
Starting lineups
Crystal Lake Central
GK: Drew Dayton
D: Garrett Hughes
D: Joey Cubelic
D: Patrick Kinahan
D: Kevin Winslow
MF: Gustavo Costa
MF: Aaron Castaneda
MF: Kareem Castaneda
MF: William Sengstock
MF: Ryan Nottoli
F: Cade Klusendorf
Crystal Lake South
GK: Brandon Gorka
D: Ricky Christante
D: Marcin Sliwinski
D: Ryan Yazel
D: Evan Carlson
MF: Brad Grabowski
MF: Ryan Coughlin
MF: Nikolas Getzinger
MF: Tommy Ciezadlo
MF: Jack Wruck
F: Andrew Grabowski
Man of the Match: Ricky Christante, D, Crystal Lake South
Officials Alex Klement (center); Bob Hansen; Bob Crummere